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Pochettino spoke of his spiritual connection to a region he had never visited before and gave them a signed copy of his book, which reflects his rural upbringing on a farm in Murphy, Argentina, and a Spurs shirt.

When the game started against Juventus, a first competitive meeting between two grand clubs, it seemed as though his players had been infused by the same generosity of spirit.

Perhaps it was contagious. Gonzalo Higuain was awarded the freedom of the penalty area for the first, an exquisite volley with a hint of offside, followed by the gift of a couple of penalties in the first-half.

Hugo Lloris, it seemed, might as well have handed over a sealed parchment entitling the bearers to a place in the quarter-finals of the competition as he went up for the coin toss.

Tottenham were error-strewn as Juventus hustled and Pochettino looked on thoughtfully and paced around his technical area.

Gonzalo Higuain gave the home side a two-goal lead inside the opening 10 minutes

Pochettino shows his frustration after his team's poor start in the Champions League clash

These were not familiar characteristics of the team he has been forging and yet this was unknown territory for his players.

It is eight years since Tottenham's last taste of Champions League knock-out football.

Harry Kane was still at school when they beat Max Allegri's Milan with a Peter Crouch goal in the San Siro and made it to the quarter-finals of the competition before succumbing to Real Madrid.

This time, they beat Real to top the group although the achievement brought little reward from the seeding process as they were drawn against the Serie A champions for the last six years.

It would be a test but Pochettino arrived like a manager who believed his team were ready to step up.

Spurs striker Harry Kane reduces the deficit with a cool finish in the first half

Not only against opponents of quality — they can find these regularly in the Premier League — but to tackle European veterans and the unique pressures of European football at this stage of the season.

Tottenham swaggered into Turin in confident form and high spirits. Kane spoke in the build-up of his visualisation process, scoring in the stadium, lifting the famous trophy.

Then they froze when Juventus turned on the bright lights and were suddenly two down against a team which had conceded only once since the middle of November.

It would take some bottle to get back into this tie as the Italians sat deep in numbers and tried to punish their opponents on the break.

And Pochettino's pride was clear to see as his team matured before his eyes, making the necessary adjustments, engaging in midfield and slowly clawing their way back into the contest.

Higuain (right) blasts his penalty onto the crossbar in the final action before half-time

Managers love to see these qualities and he gushed when it was time to reflect on the first leg.

Of course, they rode their luck. Had Higuain buried a glorious chance to make it 3-0 on the half-hour, any hope of recovery would surely have been gone.

Similarly, it would have been a tall order had the Argentine striker converted the second penalty, smashed against the bar at the end of the first half.

But, by this time Kane had found the net and Tottenham were into a better rhythm. Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli were on the ball in dangerous areas, and becoming more influential.

Eriksen draws the visitors level with a low free-kick midway through the second half

They opened up the Italian champions with surprising regularity and Eriksen excelled as Spurs dominated possession and proved able to learn on the job.

Having survived a night that began so atrociously, they can finish the job at Wembley and go deeper into the Champions League.

Pochettino has emerged with his reputation enhanced on an emotional homecoming and the travelling fans sang his name as they headed into the night.

Real Madrid already like his style. Maybe, now, Juventus will, too. 'Would you like to stay in Italy?' asked one Italian reporter after the game. He is after all, one of their own.

Pochettino applauds his team after coming from behind to secure a positive away result